Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Brandon Finnegan (29) kicks dirt on the mound after surrendering a home run to St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Greg Garcia (35) (not pictured) in the second inning during the National League baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Cincinnati Reds, Saturday, April 14, 2018, at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. (Photo: Kareem Elgazzar)

It only took four pitches Sunday to realize which direction Brandon Finnegan’s latest start was headed.

Finnegan issued a four-pitch walk to Miami’s leadoff hitter, J.T. Realmuto, and continued to unravel in a miserable first inning, setting the stage for an eventual 8-5 loss to the Marlins at Great American Ball Park in the series finale in front of a crowd of 19,800.

It took Finnegan 29 pitches to record his first out. He threw 34 pitches before a Marlins hitter had a swing and a miss. Bad enough that the Reds opted to intentionally walk Yadiel Rivera, a backup infielder batting .125, to send pitcher Dan Straily to the plate.

After giving up three walks (one intentional), two hits and four runs, the top half of the first inning ended after 20 minutes.

"I just didn’t have a feel for my pitches," Finnegan said. "After that, I felt like I bore down and started throwing strikes and getting quick outs. At that point, it was too late but I somewhat kept us in the game."

That four-pitch walk to Realmuto was just the start. Following a failed double play attempt, Finnegan bounced a fastball in the dirt to Starlin Castro. On the next pitch, he allowed a two-run single to center field. Cameron Maybin added an RBI single and another run scored on a groundout.

Reds manager Jim Riggleman noted the failed double play was a result of a 3-2 count, which allowed Realmuto to start running toward second base early. Realmuto beat the throw to second and forced a throwing error afterward.

"(Finnegan's) velocity indicates that he’s kind of where he’s been for about the last year," Riggleman said. "He’s just not commanding the strike zone, getting behind in the count, putting people in hitter’s counts."

Realmuto led off the second inning with a double and scored on a sacrifice fly from Castro.

With pitchers warming up in the bullpen as early as the fifth batter in the game, Finnegan was pulled in the fourth inning after giving up a single on a 3-1 count to Straily, the former Reds pitcher’s sixth hit of his career.

Finnegan walked off the mound, went down the dugout steps and flipped his glove on the bench. He took a seat next to his glove, sitting by himself. Homer Bailey immediately went over to Finnegan to offer a word of support, and other starting pitchers followed.

The next question will be, how can the Reds fix Finnegan’s problems? He missed the end of spring training and the start of the season because of a biceps strain. Catching up late, he’s surrendered 19 earned runs and 15 walks in 20 ⅔ innings.

Does he need to be taken out of the starting rotation?

"I don’t really think I can address that really at this time," Riggleman said. "We’ve just got to get better starts whether it’s Brandon or somebody in that slot. I don’t know. He’s better than this. I know that."

Finnegan, the 25-year-old lefty, is the same pitcher who quickly rose through the ranks of baseball. He was the first player ever to pitch in the World Series and the College World Series in the same season. That turned him into the main prize in a trade with the Kansas City Royals for Johnny Cueto.

As a starting pitcher for the Reds in 2016, Finnegan showcased his potential. Opposing hitters had a .236 batting average against him. He used to keep hitters off balance with his sinker and slider.

Two seasons later and none of it is working as well. Finnegan’s opposing batting average was up to .324 before he gave up five runs on four hits in 3 ⅓ innings Sunday.

"I’ve got to let my pitches work," Finnegan said. "It feels like a slow start for a hitter. I just have to keep working. The only way to get out of a slump is to keep working and pushing. It’s not for a lack of work on the outside or effort. It’s definitely all there."

Trailing by four runs before sending a batter to the plate was too much ground for the Reds’ offense to cover. After they were shut out Saturday, Joey Votto ended an 18-inning scoreless streak with a two-run homer into left field in the third inning.

Following a 73-minute rain delay, Votto drilled an RBI double to score Billy Hamilton in the seventh inning and added a run-scoring single in the ninth. In the three-game series against the Marlins, Votto went 7-for-13 at the plate with four extra-base hits.

Miami scored three runs against the Reds' bullpen and needed all of them. The Reds brought the game-tying run to the plate in the ninth inning with the help of two errors by Marlins shortstop Rivera.

With runners on the corners and two outs, Marlins closer Brad Ziegler struck out Scott Schebler in an eight-pitch at-bat.